China denounced Russia’s war in Ukraine Tuesday and said it would help negotiate a ceasefire as cracks in relations between the two Asian superpowers deepened.
Beijing was “extremely concerned about the harm to civilians” in the invasion and “Ukraine … looks forward to China playing a role in realizing a ceasefire,” the authoritarian government said in a statement after a call between diplomats from both nations, according to the Financial Times.
The foreign ministers also talked about evacuating the approximately 6,000 Chinese nationals that live, work and study in Ukraine, the report said.
The Chinese call for peace comes a day after the country’s foreign ministry distanced itself from Moscow for its role in invading Ukraine. A building is damaged by shelling in Kharkiv, Ukraine on March 1, 2022. AP Photo/Pavel Dorogoy
Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, and Russian President Vladimir Putin talk to each other during their meeting in Beijing on Feb. 4, 2022. Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP
China denounced Russia’s war in Ukraine Tuesday and said it would help negotiate a ceasefire as cracks in relations between the two powerhouses increased. Stuart DeeThe Chinese call for peace came a day after China’s foreign ministry distanced itself from Moscow, claiming the two nations were “strategic partners” not allies, according to Newsweek.
It was a dramatic shift from just one month ago, when Russian President Vladimir Putin and China President Xi Jinping issued a joint statement pushing back on the US and any NATO expansion as the Winter Olympics began in Beijing.
With Post wires
